


Honey, I Hate You

by lovelyavengers (fandomsandxfiles)



Series: From The SSR Case Files [1]
Category: Agent Carter (TV)
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Implied/Referenced Domestic Violence, Undercover as a Couple
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-20
Updated: 2020-03-04
Packaged: 2021-02-27 18:55:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,911
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22810600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomsandxfiles/pseuds/lovelyavengers
Summary: An undercover mission, nosy neighbors in a New Jersey suburb, and the person you trust least in the whole world.  Just another day at the office, right?
Relationships: Jack Thompson/Reader
Series: From The SSR Case Files [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1809622
Comments: 9
Kudos: 77





	1. Neighborhood Watch

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! I'm Tori and this is my second Jack Thompson/Reader fic. If you've read my other fics, welcome back! And if not, welcome anyway! 
> 
> *trigger warning: this fic does contain references to abusive relationships, specifically romantic relationships. It is not the main character who experiences this, but I wanted to give everyone the heads up so that anyone who might be triggered by it can make the decision whether or not to read and be safely informed. I have already tagged the fic as a warning, but if there's anything else I should do, please let me know.*

Daniel handed you the file and you grimaced as you started to read the assignment. "I wouldn't do this to you if I had any other choice," he said knowingly. "I know you don't want to have to go anywhere near New York. But this is an important mission, and we need to pull it off."

You nodded, still looking through the file. "Peggy's still not back from Washington DC then?"

Daniel shook his head. "No, and anyway, she's too recognizable as an agent. This will only work with someone who will blend into a crowd."

"And who I am going to be working with?" you asked. "This is a mission for two."

"Someone from the New York office," Daniel said, hesitating before he answered you. "My office can't afford losing two people for that long. It's going to suffer enough with you gone for this and Peggy in DC. This should have been something for the New York office to handle by itself, based on its location, but both and you and Peggy are over here."

"Do you know who?"

"No," Daniel said, shaking his head again. "But if it's any consolation, I don't think it will be him. It's a long assignment, and although the entire office isn't exactly aware of what has gone on between you two, they know that something happened and you're not fond of each other."

"I really don't have a choice in this do I?" you asked tiredly.

"Right now I'm speaking as your supervisor, and the answer is no you do not," Daniel said, and you left the office to pack your things. This was shaping up to be the worst month of your life.

The mission looked simple on the outside. There was intel that a sector of an unknown threat, possibly Leviathan, was operating on US soil and looking to recruit. Your mission was go successfully infiltrate their ranks and identify all the members for prosecution. But it wasn't that easy.

***

"Y/N, stop whining for one second and explain to me this mission," Peggy said over the phone later that night. She had called to get some information to Chief Sousa and after business was taken care of, you immediately started to complain about the mission you had to go on.

"Apparently there is a group of enemy operatives in the US that are working on recruiting people for their cause. Intel tells us that they have based themselves in Cedar Grove, a suburban town in New Jersey," you said. "And my job is to move into the town, infiltrate their ranks, and identify which of the neighbors are actually enemies of the United States."

"That doesn't sound that bad," Peggy said. "I still don't understand why you're so worried about it."

"I haven't told you everything yet, Peggy," you answered. "A childless, unmarried woman moving into a house by herself has been deemed suspicious due to the current economic conditions, so I am going to be going with another SSR agent to pose as newlyweds."

"Okay," Peggy said. "So who are you going with?"

"I don't know. Daniel said his office can't afford to lose two people for that amount of time, so I'm being paired with an agent from the New York office."

"Ah," Peggy said knowingly. "Now I know why you're all nervous. But you shouldn't be. It's not going to be him, Y/N, there's no conceivable reason for it to make sense."

You sighed. "You're the second person to tell me that today, Peggy," you said. "But I suppose you're right. I should stop worry about it, finish packing, and go to bed. I do have a flight to catch tomorrow after all."

***

You hadn't been back to New York City since your hastened leave a year ago, and you certainly had not stepped back into the New York Bell Company building. But newlyweds arriving to move into a neighborhood separately is automatically suspicious, so you had to meet your mission partner at the SSR. A sense of pure dread overtook you as the door to the office opened. Every step you took felt like it echoed all the way back to Los Angeles, and you spotted a set of luggage outside the door to the bullpen, which must belong to your mission partner. _'It won't be him, it won't be him, it won't be him,'_ you repeated in your head constantly, until you laid eyes on a briefcase sitting innocently next to the suitcases. And your heart dropped.

You knew that briefcase. It used to sit discarded on the floor of your apartment after work, as you kissed its owner senselessly, only to be picked up again as your boyfriend left for the night, as he kissed you goodbye. It was the briefcase of the one person you'd swore you would never speak to again, let alone exist in the same space. The initials on the handle seemed to be taunting you, the universe's way of telling you that everything you had feared for this mission was about to be your reality. And you wanted to turn around and run, straight back to Los Angeles. But you knew you couldn't.

Instead, you burst through the door into the bullpen, pure anger on your face, heels clicking threateningly. Upon your arrival, every agent in the room stopped working and stared at you, holding their breath and wondering what you would do next. "Where is he?" you demanded shortly.

No one said a word for a few seconds, until the man in question stepped out of the chief's office. "You're late," he said, walking towards the door. "Come on, we have a train to catch."

The agents of the New York SSR watched as you and Jack Thompson stared at each other, him waiting for your response. "Fine," you said, anger showing on your face. "Let's go then."

This was definitely going to be the worst month of your life.

***

The train was nearly empty as you two boarded, putting away the few pieces of luggage that you had kept with you. The rest of your things would arrive via a moving van the next day, to further sell the notion that you two were just a set of newlyweds, not government secret agents. You sat across from Jack in the car, as far away as you possibly could, and stared out the window until the train started to move. "Why is it you?" you asked bitterly, keeping your voice as low as you could.

Jack looked shocked that you had instigated conversation with him, and he sighed before answering you. "Because we know things about each other, pieces of our lives that you can't get from a professional relationship. From when we..." he trailed off.

"From when we what?" you pressed. "Dated? Because I seem to remember you telling me that I meant nothing to you and that what we had was a mistake."

Jack grimaced, no doubt remembering what you often called one of the worst days of your life, the day you went home and cried yourself to sleep over SSR Agent Jack Thompson. The day that Jack broke up with you. "Look, Y/N, I-" he started to say, but you cut him off.

"I understand that this is going to be the worst month of my life, and let's try not to make it any worse that it has to be. I'll play along with the cover when we're out in public and I'll watch your back in any danger, but that doesn't mean I've forgotten anything that has happened between us. You don't have to pretend that I mean anything to you for any longer than you have to, okay?" you said, turning away from him and pulled a book out of your bag.

Jack opened his mouth to respond, but decided against it when he saw the look on your face. But you had gotten one thing wrong in your outburst. He didn't have to pretend that he loved you, that you were the light of his life. Because you already were, and he never stopped loving you.

***

The rest of the train ride was silent, and so was the drive to the house after picking up the rental car. As Jack pulled into the driveway of the house, you took a deep breath, not knowing what you were going to encounter outside of the car door. Daniel warned you that suburbs often housed tight-knit groups of neighbors and nosy housewives with too much time on their hands. "You ready?" Jack asked, breaking you from your daze.

"As I'll ever be," you responded as you opened the door.

Before you could even bring the first round of your bags to the door, a woman was walking up your driveway. "You must be the new members of the neighborhood!" she said cheerily. "I just wanted to come introduce myself! I'm Nora, and I live about three houses down from here," she said, pointing to her house, which was painted a pale blue.

You put on your best fake smile as Jack held out his hand to shake. "I'm Jack Miller, and this is my wife, Y/N. It's nice to meet you." You had decided to keep your first names the same to eliminate any possible confusion.

Nora ignored Jack's outstretched hand and walked right over to you, giving you a big hug. "Welcome to the neighborhood!" she chirped as she let go of you. "I was going to bring you some cookies that I baked but I saw you pull up and I ran out so fast I forgot the basket! I'll let you guys get settled in a little more and I'll bring them by later."

You smiled warmly at her. "Of course! We're really excited to get to know everyone in the neighborhood!" you said brightly, matching her cheery tone.

After a few more exchanges of basic small talk, Nora walked back over to her house, and you and Jack managed to get the rest of the bags in the house without any more neighborly run-ins. "Did she seem a little too friendly to you?" Jack asked once the door of the house closed behind you.

You shook your head. "Daniel had warned me about nosy neighbors. I think this is just normal."

***

As Jack brought the last few bags in from the car, you took a look around the house. It was fairly small, but pretty modern in terms of the kitchen and dining room. But there was one glaring problem. The house only had one bedroom. With only one bed. You walked back out to the living room and sat down on the couch, feeling the material. It wouldn't be the most comfortable of things to sleep on, but it was soft enough that you could endure sleeping on it for the duration of the mission. Since the rest of your stuff was arriving in the fake moving van the next day, you decided to just stretch out and read. But you could never get more than a few pages into your book, because the doorbell kept on ringing. And Jack had left you alone in the front room, disappearing somewhere into the house, so you had to answer the door every time.

First, it was Nora, dropping off the promised basket of cookies she baked, which you accepted with a little more small talk. Then, it was Helen, a heavily pregnant blonde who stopped by to give you a loaf of cranberry bread and chat for a few minutes. After that it was Clara, who stopped by with her husband James to drop off muffins for the two of you. The dining table was slowly filling up with baked goods from the neighbors, and you were tired of opening the door. After talking to Agnes, whose gift was a still warm apple pie, you heaved a big sigh as you headed back over to the couch.

You didn't realize that Jack had heard you sigh, and he emerged from wherever he was hiding to find you. "You okay?" he asked, raising his eyebrows at you.

"If one more neighbor knocks on the front door, I can't be held responsible for my actions," you muttered. "I don't know if I can do this."

Jack took one look into the dining room, at the pile of housewarming presents, and stifled a laugh. "Well at least we're getting baked goods out of their disruptions," he said.

"Next time someone knocks on the door, and there will be a next time, you're getting it," you said, glaring at him. "And you can see how much I would rather be anywhere else in the entire world rather than discuss the weather one more time, or answer questions about my fake marriage with a man who obviously cannot stand to look at me!"

Jack was silent for a few seconds, but then started to respond. "I don't-"

"And I'll tell you right now, I know exactly what everyone is going to ask, because not one neighbor who stopped by hasn't asked me this!" you continued, raising your voice loud enough to convey your emotions, but not loud enough to be heard by anyone outside of the house. "They all ask when we plan on having children, and I have to look every one of them in the eye and say, no, I don't really want children, and every single one of them gives me a look like I'm from Mars! But I can't just say that I'm a government agent who makes enough money to get by on her own, they all see me as one of them, a housewife who'll wear her pearls and offer her husband a drink when he walks in the door!" You sucked in a breath, trying to stop yourself from appearing vulnerable in front of a man you can't stand, the very man who ripped your heart out barely a year ago.

As if on instinct, Jack moved towards you and wrapped you in a hug. But he barely put his arms around you before you were pushing out of his grasp and disappearing down the hall into the bedroom. But before he could call out to you, tell you to come back, confess everything he's wanted to say to you since you left New York, the doorbell rang again. Taking a deep breath, Jack made his way over to the door, opening it to reveal a woman standing on the front porch. "Hi!" she said brightly. "I'm Evelyn, and I live across the street from you. I just wanted to welcome you and your wife to the neighborhood and drop this off for you two to enjoy!"

Jack introduced himself and looked down at her hands to see her holding a platter with some sort of cake on it. "Thank you," he said, taking the plate from her. "I'm sure it's delicious."

Evelyn smiled, explaining that it was pineapple upside down cake, and that the recipe was a guarded family secret. Jack nodded and smiled at her, but internally now completely understood why you were already tired of interacting with neighbors and you hadn't even been here for a whole day. "Is your wife around?" Evelyn asked suddenly, craning her neck to try and see past Jack into the house. "I wanted to get a chance to talk to her."

Jack shook his head. "She had a bit of a headache after we finished unpacking what we brought, and is laying down right now. But I'm sure we'll run into you again," he said.

Evelyn nodded and gave Jack a tight smile. "Well, I should be getting back," she said. "It was nice to meet you!" she called, walking down the walkway away from the house.

Jack shut the door and headed over to the kitchen to put the cake in the refrigerator before making his way into the living room. Thankfully, he had thought of bringing some food with you both, this way you didn't have to go grocery shopping on the first day. He figured that would be something the two of you did tomorrow, after the SSR brought the rest of your things. You weren't moving into this house for real, but you two had packed way more than you needed because a couple claiming to be moving into a house for good that didn't have that much stuff with them would no doubt arouse suspicion. He had a quick dinner of a sandwich that was packed for the mission, and remained at the table for a few more minutes, mapping out a game plan for the next day. Leaving your sandwich in the fridge, he went to check on you.

When he got to the living room, he noticed that you had fallen asleep on the couch, having taken a pillow from the bed. His heart broke when he realized that you were going to sleep on the couch for this entire mission because you couldn't stand to be near him. He had hoped that you two would have at least been civil with each other, but it looked like that wasn't going to happen tonight. He rooted around through his suitcase to find the large blanket that his grandmother knitted him, and draped it over you on the couch before heading to get ready for bed. He would offer you the bed tomorrow and he would sleep on the couch, but he didn't want to wake you up to offer it today because you deserved peace and him not bothering you if you didn't want it.

Tossing and turning in the bed that night, he couldn't stop thinking about you, and how much he wanted to make things right.

***

The next morning you woke to the smell of coffee brewing and sat up on the couch. There wasn't a clock in the room, so you couldn't tell what time it was, but sunlight was streaming in through the curtains. The couch was more comfortable then you expected, but you didn't remember going to sleep with a blanket covering you, which was a big part of your comfort. After taking a closer look at the blanket, you realized that it wasn't yours, because the one you packed was arriving on the moving van today, and you didn't think it came with the house. You thought you recognized it from somewhere, and then it hit you. This was Jack's blanket, the one that his grandmother knitted him for Christmas. You had never met Jack's Gam-Gam, but you did remember him putting the blanket on his bed when it first arrived.

Ignoring the fact that Jack must have put the blanket over you last night, and the fact that he most likely caught onto your plan to sleep on the couch, you headed over to the kitchen. Jack was already there, sitting at the table and nursing a steaming mug of black coffee. He nodded at you when you entered the room and motioned towards the counter, where a second mug of coffee sat. Upon closer inspection, it was fixed exactly the way you like it, and for a second you couldn't believe that he still remembered how you took your coffee. Thanking him quietly, you took the mug and left the room, heading back over to the couch where you could sit and enjoy your coffee in peace, without Jack staring at you.

You were about halfway done with the coffee when you heard him enter the room and clear his throat. You looked at him, standing in the doorway, and he began to speak. "I'm almost positive the van is coming at noon today, and that Agent Williams is going to be driving it. Other than that, I think we should probably go grocery shopping today, because other than the desserts all the neighbors dropped off, we really don't have a lot of food other than a sandwich."

You nodded. "I can go to the grocery store now," you said. "I don't know what time it is, but I'll probably be back before Williams shows up with the van."

"It's about quarter after nine," Jack answered, shaking his head. "I think we should both head to the grocery store after the van comes, this way we can stay outside of all suspicion. It makes more sense for us both to be here and both of us to leave together."

"I think I can handle grocery shopping by myself, Thompson," you practically growled.

Jack's face fell at your tone and angry use of his last name, but quickly recovered. "I'm perfectly aware of your skills Agent," he bit back. "But what I'm suggesting is that we can maximize our time if we both go together. And besides, isn't this the sort of thing that newlywed couples do? It will look strange if we never seem to interact with each other."

You were silent for a few minutes, thinking about his answer. "Fine," you said shortly. "We'll go to the store together. We'll probably see half the neighborhood there anyway."

***

At exactly noon, a truck pulled up in front of the house, and a man got out. You called to Jack through the house that the truck was there, and headed outside to greet Agent Williams. He nodded at you when you exited the house, and started to open the back of the truck. You could hear Jack open the door behind you, so you knew he was here, but what you weren't expecting was for him to slip his arm around your waist. You recoiled at the touch, and gave him a quick glare. "What are you doing?" you hissed.

"Go with it!" he answered back, leaning down to whisper in your ear. "We have to sell this thing, remember!" To anyone looking at the two of you from a distance, it would look like you were whispering sweet nothings to each other as you started to build a life together.

You sighed, but didn't push against him anymore. His touch was warm and familiar, and something in you started to wish that this wasn't fake, that your relationship didn't end up the way it did. You pushed those thoughts to the back of your head and watched around the neighborhood, seeing some curtains flutter as the nosier neighbors no doubt watched the truck unload your stuff. After helping Jack and Agent Williams get the everything out of the moving truck, Williams bid you both goodbye and slipped Jack a piece of paper.

As you both headed inside, you shut the door and Jack looked at what he was given. "Enemy cell confirmed in this neighborhood," Jack read off lowly. "Send any suspicious activity back to be investigated. Under no circumstances break cover."

"How are we going to get any important information back to the SSR?" you asked. "We can't exactly be seen meeting up for coffee with the agents and risk being recognized."

"I'll be taking the train back in to the city everyday during office hours to work. To the neighbors, I'll be be another businessman going to work in an office," Jack answered. "If we need to get anything to the SSR on a weekend that can't wait until Monday, or if we're worried about a mole in the office, one of the women who works in the telephone operating room, Sarah, lives about halfway between here and New York City with her husband. For the sake of this mission, we tell the neighbors that she's your sister, and we go over their house for dinner sometimes. She can then get the information to whoever is deemed trustworthy."

***

"I haven't seen anything suspicious so far," you said. You two were in the car, driving to the grocery store to get food. "Hopefully we can be done with this mission quickly and I can go back to LA."

Jack fought to keep a straight face and not sigh, because honestly, that was the exact opposite of what he wanted. "I did notice something last night," he chose to say instead. "You had fallen asleep and one of the neighbors knocked on the door, so I answered it. She said her name was Evelyn, and that she lived across the street. But she didn't seem too keen on small talk like you said the other neighbors were. She asked for you, and then made an excuse to get back really quickly after I told her you were laying down."

"I don't think that her actions are grounds for arrest," you said. "But when I meet her I'll try to see if anything seems off. But that could just be normal for around here, you know? When Nora came over to introduce herself, she spoke more to me than to you."

"That's true," Jack reasoned. "Neither of us have had any experiences in tight-knit suburb like this, so we really don't know what's considered normal."

After that, neither of you really spoke the rest of the way to the store, and you couldn't have been happier when the car pulled into the parking lot. The air between you and Jack in the car was thick with tension, and you were almost excited to go into the store. At least when you were grocery shopping, you two were going to play the role of loving newlyweds, and you didn't have to face the true nature of your relationship. And deep down, you knew that there was a part of you that would be lying if you didn't miss the loving relationship dynamic you used to have with Jack. But rationality took over your mind when you remembered the intense emotional pain that he caused you, when he ripped your heart out and stomped on it. You were allowing this romantic dynamic between you two to become too familiar with this mission. Putting on a straight face, you decided that you were going to focus on figuring out which of your neighbors wasn't who they said they were. The sooner you did that, the sooner you could get on a plane back to LA.

The store was thankfully quiet, and reaching into your pocket, you brought out the list of groceries you had wanted to get. "Should we split up?" Jack asked. "We can get the items quicker that way."

You shook your head. "As much as that's more convenient, if we're going to sell the whole newlywed thing like you said, we have to appear as if we can't let the other out of our sight," you said lowly. "And god forbid anything bad happens and we meet any hostiles sooner than expected, we can keep track of each other without worrying too much."

He nodded and you both began to make your way around the store collecting the things on the list. Although there weren't that many people in the store, it wasn't too long before you were spotted.

You were minding your own business while comparing the ripeness of some tomatoes when Jack nudged you gently. "Remember the neighbor I told you about in the car?" he whispered. "That's her."

You looked in the direction he was referencing to see a woman who looked a little older than you with mousy brown hair and a blue dress. You quickly looked away, but she had already seen Jack and was making her way over towards the two of you. "Jack, right?" she said, and he nodded. "So this must be your wife then! I'm Evelyn, I stopped by the house last night to drop off a cake for you two, but he said that you had a headache and was laying down. But I wanted to welcome you two to our neighborhood!" she chirped.

You smiled widely and matched her tone. "Hi! I'm Y/N!" you said. "It's lovely to meet you! I was just telling Jack how nice everyone in the neighborhood seemed and how generous everyone was. I feel like our dining table is laden with housewarming gifts!" you joked.

Evelyn smiled in response. "Our neighborhood is really something special," she said brightly. "I wanted to meet you so I could invite you to the garden party I have at my house with the other ladies of the neighborhood. Everyone brings something over to the house and we have a nice relaxing lunch. Everyone sees it as a small reprieve from the monotony of everyday life, you know? I'm having one this Thursday and I would love for you to come and meet everyone!"

"That sounds like so much fun!" you said. "I'd love to join you ladies for lunch, what do you want me to bring?"

"How about dessert?" Evelyn asked. "I think we have everything else covered but you can never have too much dessert."

"My sentiments exactly."

Evelyn split off after a few more minutes of small talk, and Jack turned to you. "Okay, she seemed completely normal today compared to last night."

You paused for a second, thinking about it. "I can't really get a total read on her yet, but I'm definitely going to be going to that lunch thing she mentioned. Maybe the operatives we're looking for are a bit odd and keep to themselves, and based on my interactions so far with the other women of the neighborhood, if something was fishy, they wouldn't be quiet about it."

After unpacking and putting away the groceries, you and Jack went your separate ways. You left the kitchen first, heading back to the couch, where you had basically claimed as your territory. He followed you into the living room and your eyes met in an uneasy stare. You both said nothing before he quickly gave you a sad look and moved on to head to the bedroom. As you resumed your place in your book, you couldn't help but wonder why he looked sad. He was the one who ended your relationship, not you. He was the one who told you that you meant absolutely nothing to him and that your time together was a lie. He had no right to look at you like you're the one who's at fault for your current strained relationship dynamic.

You didn't see him for the rest of the day, and fell asleep on the couch again far earlier than was probably acceptable, so you didn't see him walk by and stare at you sadly.

***

The next morning, you woke up to hear the front door close as Jack left the house. He was going back to work at the SSR building, and to any of the neighbors he was just an average guy with an office job and you were just his wife, who stayed at home. But your job was much more than that. Tomorrow you had the garden party with the ladies of the neighborhood, and you had to see if you could get any information about the confirmed threat. Best case scenario, someone has noticed something fishy, or even better, you can confidently pick out someone as the spy, arrest them in a day and be on a plane back to Los Angeles within the next week. But you highly doubted that was going to happen.

When you closed the front door to your house the next day holding the cake you made in hand, you could see more women heading across the street to Evelyn's house. Some of them you recognized because they had given you baked goods when you first moved in, but others were completely new faces. You followed everyone else around to the backyard, which was set up with a long table on the patio, and smaller tables holding more food than you could ever believe. Setting the cake down along with the other desserts, you turned around to see Nora waving at you and walking over.

"Y/N!" she chirped. "I'm so glad you're here! The last time I spoke with Evelyn she said that she hadn't met you yet, only your husband. I was worried she wouldn't see you and invite you."

"Yeah, I met her the other day at the supermarket," you said. "But I Jack told me that she had dropped by with a gift on the day we moved in. I felt bad that I couldn't meet her, but after that day I was so tired and didn't really feel well. "

Nora nodded in understanding. "I completely understand. The day after I moved in, I was so tired I spent the entire next day in bed!"

More small talk followed your conversation with Nora, along with introductions to the women you had not met before, and soon you were all seated at the long table enjoying the small finger foods that everyone had brought. You were sitting towards the end of the table, with Nora, Evelyn, and Clara, who had introduced themselves on the first day you moved in, along with Betty and Mary, who you hadn't met before. Mary was small and quiet, only really speaking when she was addressed by name, which was different from all of the other ladies, who were loud and boisterous. At one point during your conversation, a sudden shout of laughter could be heard from the other side of the table, and Mary flinched ever so slightly. No one seemed to notice it except you, so you didn't say anything, but definitely didn't file it away as nothing.

"How long have you been married for?" Nora asked. "You and your husband are really sweet together."

"We've known each other since we were kids," you said. This was the backstory that the SSR had decided for you. "We were high school sweethearts, but the war happened and we split up before he was deployed. I met him again after he came back from the navy and we started dating. We got married just under six months ago, and I've loved every second of it." It took a little more for you to get that last sentence out, but you did.

The ladies awed around you. "So, when are you two going to have kids?" Betty asked you, adding to the conversation.

Internally you groaned, but your face didn't show it. "Actually, we don't really plan on having kids," you answered, beginning the same speech you've said every time you were asked that question. "We've discussed it at length, and decided that it was something both of us never really pictured for our lives together."

Mary nodded, but Betty looked fairly shocked. "Then aren't you going to be bored sitting at home all day? I don't know what I'd do with myself if I didn't have my kids."

"Well I'm thinking about looking for a job in a little while after we get all settled in," you said. "Something to do you know?"

Betty didn't really look convinced, but she let the subject matter go, and you turned to Mary. "Have you been married long?" you asked, smiling at her.

"Just two years," she said softly.

"That's lovely," you answered. "And you said you have kids right?"

"Just one. He's a little over a year old. Robert says he looks like a mini version of himself at that age. My mother is watching him now, this way I could actually come to this. I rarely get to come to the neighborhood events because the baby keeps me so busy."

That sentence pulled up a red flag for you. "I understand that," you said. "Having a baby must be tough on you."

"I am always so tired," she said, nodding. "But it's rewarding," she added quickly, before you could respond.

The rest of the party went on smoothly, and you soon were walking back to the house, thinking about every interaction you had. There was a lot to consider.

***

You were sitting on the couch with a notebook, writing down notes from the garden party so you could better make sense of everything when Jack walked in the door. "Honey, I'm home!" he said loudly, walking into the living room to find you.

"You know you don't have to do that everyday," you said. "We're not married."

"Well I didn't know if any of the neighbors would be here talking, so I didn't want to blow the cover," he said, and you understood his logic now.

"No one is here but me now, but if you have a second, I need to talk some things through from the garden party today," you answered.

He nodded and disappeared for a few minutes before returning to the living room and sitting down on the armchair across from the couch. "So what happened?"

"I didn't get the feeling that anyone there had any shifty tendencies, but I did meet one woman named Mary who seemed different. She was meek and quiet, and from what she told me she stays at home a lot with her son. She got married two years ago, but only mentioned her husband once, when I asked about the baby," you said, wheels in your head turning.

"I don't get it," Jack said. "Aren't babies a lot of work? You can't exactly leave them at home all day by themselves."

"Yeah, but every other woman there was carefree and joyous, yet she seemed constantly on guard. When I spoke about not wanting children, she was the only one who looked like she understood, and she caught herself before she could say too many bad things about being a mother."

"You're going to have to spell it out for me, I'm not following."

"I don't think she's the spy we're looking for, but her husband might be," you said. "I don't think he's home very often, leaving her to take care of a child all by herself. And I get the feeling that she didn't really want children, but he did. If he is the spy we're looking for, he would have needed to establish himself in a very grounding way. A marriage and a child would set him up nicely for that. She told me her son was just over a year old, and don't forget, she's only been married for two years."

"That makes sense," Jack said. " Having a child as quickly as possible would eliminate any suspicion. Like you said, the neighbors look at us oddly because we don't plan on having any. I think we should try and get close to them and see. Maybe invite her and her husband over for dinner one day? This was I can get a read on them both too."

"I'm going to try and interact with Mary more," you added. "If I befriend her, she might be more willing to explain what's really happening in her home."

"This is good," Jack said, nodding. "I don't think we're ready to send back to the SSR yet, but at least we have something to go off of."


	2. Agents in Love

You had fallen into a routine at this point with Jack. He left in the morning to go back to the office, and you stayed around the house, doing whatever you wanted. The two of you really didn't cook that much, and you stayed pretty separate from each other, so everything was still pretty neat and tidy. Each day at 11 am, you walked over to Mary's house four houses down, and you two went on a walk through the neighborhood. She had her son in a stroller, and it was good for the both of them to get out of the house, even if it was only for 20 minutes a day. For you, these walks served two purposes: get close enough to Mary for her to trust and confide in you if something was wrong, and to scope out the neighborhood in general. Right now, you were still getting to know her.

This morning, she was already on her front walkway when you arrived at her house, baby William in his stroller. After peeking in and waving at the baby, you turned to Mary. "You two are bright and ready this morning!"

She smiled bashfully. "Yeah, William was awake earlier than he normally is, so I just started getting ready a little earlier."

The two of you fell in line next to each other and started to walk. At one point, you stumbled in the small heels you were wearing threw your arm out to balance yourself, accidentally hitting Mary on the shoulder. She flinched and looked like she was in pain. "I am so so sorry," you said. "I think I stepped on something the wrong way. Are you okay?" You cursed the social norm of wearing heels everywhere, even for a walk around the neighborhood.

"No, don't worry about it," she answered. "I'm fine."

"Is your shoulder okay?" you asked, not totally convinced she was fine. You didn't think you had fallen into her hard enough for her to react how she did.

"Yes, it's fine," she said. "I'm afraid I stumbled myself last night and accidentally grazed a wall with it." That set off another red flag in your head, but you decided to let the matter go for now. "Do you like it here so far?" she asked, changing the subject.

"I was worried about moving to such a small town and neighborhood at first," you said. "But everyone here has been so welcoming! I was so touched that Evelyn sought me out to invite me to the garden party when I first got here."

"Evelyn is such a sweetheart!" Mary said, smiling. "She always offers to babysit William if I ever just need a day off, and she invites me to everything, even though I can't always get there. I call her sometimes if I just need someone to talk to and vent, and she told me if I ever needed it for any reason, I could stay in her guest room."

You nodded, taking in what she just said. Something was definitely awry in the neighborhood.

The rest of the walk continued without anything notable, and you ended up back in Mary's front yard. "I'll see you tomorrow!" she said, lifting William's hand in a wave.

"Bye!" you said. "And Mary I wanted to say that if you ever need anything, I have your back okay? Us ladies have to stick together."

"Thank you," she said, smiling softly. "And same for you, okay?"

You nodded and headed back to your house.

***

It was becoming more and more obvious as the days went on, that something wasn't right in Mary's house. But you couldn't figure out what it was. Her and husband had invited you and Jack over for dinner, and something just felt off the entire time. Robert, Mary's husband, seemed nice, but there was something about him that you found unsettling. But he didn't strike you as a communist spy, so you were conflicted in your emotions towards him.

In order to try and make sense of everything that was happening, or wasn't happening in this neighborhood, you could often be found sitting on the couch, notebook and pen in hand, scribbling notes and muttering to yourself. And this day was no different.

You were lost in thought when Jack entered the living room, clearing his throat to get your attention. Your head jerked up to look in his direction, but you didn't say anything to him. But you didn't look angry for any reason, so Jack took a breath and started to say what he'd been working up the courage to say since you first got to the house. "Y/N," he said, voice uncharacteristically soft. "Can we talk for a minute?"

You nodded, face still fairly devoid of emotion. "Sure. What is it?" you asked evenly, not sure what he was going to say.

"I want to apologize for so many things," he began. "First, I'm sorry that I didn't put in the file that we would be working together, and that it was sprung on you when you walked into the New York office. I'm sorry for acting harsh towards you in any way since we've been here. And most of all, I'm deeply sorry for the way that I ended our relationship a year ago. I've lived in regret every single day for what I did. I don't expect you to forgive me, but I hate the dynamic we have here when we're not faking for the neighbors. After this mission is done, you can get back on a plane to LA and never speak to me again, but can we at least be somewhat friends while we're here? We are in this together."

You were silent for a few moments as Jack waited nervously for your response. After what seemed like forever to him, you nodded. "I would like that," you finally said. "Jack I don't know what happened to you a year ago, but I can see that things are different. And I hate this dynamic too. I would really like to at least be civil with you, and hopefully friends."

Jack's face broke into a small smile. "Yeah," he said. "I would really like to be friends too."

"Well," you said. "Friends it is then."

"Friends it is."

***

So you two fell into another routine. Every evening when Jack came back from the office, he would almost comically shout "Honey, I'm hooooome!" throughout the house, which served two purposes: one, it made you laugh uncontrollably, and two, if anyone happened to be over the house with you, they would never suspect that the two of you weren't married. You ate dinner together, rather than just both of you making something quick and small and only eating when the other left the room. You and Jack alternated on who would cook dinner, and the rule was whoever cooked, the other would have to do the dishes. And after dinner would consist of the two of you doing any work for the case, or just relaxing with the radio on until one of you got tired. Jack had offered for you to sleep in the bed countless times, but you always refused, because the couch was entirely too small for him to sleep on. And besides, it wasn't that uncomfortable.

Until it suddenly was.

It was little things at first, like waking up with your arm asleep or a crick in your neck from sleeping strangely. Soon your back began to hurt when you laid down against the material because there was nowhere for you to roll over to, so you were stuck sleeping in one position and one position only. But you never said a word about it, so Jack didn't know.

But in reality, Jack had noticed something was up. He wasn't stupid, he could tell that something was off with you those few days, and he didn't think he had done anything to upset you, so he wasn't sure what was wrong. Until he walked by the living room one night after you two had gone to bed and saw you get off the couch and pace around, stretching your arms and legs. "Go sleep in the bed," he said softly, not wanting to startle you. "I can tell you're hurting from sleeping on the couch everyday. You're not allowed to argue on this."

You didn't realize that he was still awake and had seen you march around the living room, grumbling in pain and stretching your entire body. "It's fine," you said turning around to face him. "It'll be better after I stretch a little bit."

"Nope, that's not happening," he pressed. "You go sleep in the bed, I'll sleep on the couch. You shouldn't even have been sleeping there in the first place."

"But if it's this uncomfortable for me, how do you expect to fall asleep at all?" you asked. "It's not a big deal, just go back to bed."

He didn't answer you, instead choosing to walk towards the couch and pick up your pillow and blanket and head into the hallway towards the bedroom. You were following him and protesting the whole time, but he refused to listen. He put your stuff down on the bed and moved to grab his blanket and pillow, but you were just as quick. Soon the two of you were standing opposite each other, holding a blanket and pillow each and arguing over who would sleep in the bed.

Until Jack shocked you out of the blue. "Why don't we both just sleep in the bed?" he asked. "It's big enough."

You were speechless. "Jack-" you started to say, not entirely sure what was coming next.

But he cut you off. "Come on Y/N, you know that neither of us are going to back down and we'll end up arguing until morning. We can both act like professionals and just share." _It's not like we haven't slept in the same bed before_ , he wanted to say, but chose to keep that to himself.

You looked from him to the bed. It was bigger than a traditional double bed, so after a few moments you turned back to Jack. "Fine," you said quietly. "We can share."

Jack fought hard internally to not grin brightly at your statement. Both of you got into the bed and turned away from each other, leaving a fairly large space in between the two of you. Trying not to think about how you wanted to roll over and curl up next to him like you used to, you shut your eyes and finally drifted off to sleep.

***

Jack woke up the next morning to the sunlight streaming in through the windows. He didn't have to go to work today, so he really didn't have to worry about what time it was. But he was soon acutely aware of your presence next to him in the bed. Because at some point in the night, both of you had turned and cuddled up to each other, and now you were laying curled up next to his chest, and his arm was laying on top of the covers, it was across your stomach, holding you close to him.

To Jack, it was the most precious thing in the world, and he wanted to savor the moment as much as he possible could. Although the two of you were slowly getting back to the point where you trusted him and could truly be yourselves around each other, he knew that if you woke up and saw this, it would reverse everything. So as much as it pained him, he slowly made his way out of bed and headed to the kitchen to make breakfast for the two of you, hoping with all of his heart that you would continue to sleep in the bed with him for the remainder of the mission.

You awoke to the smell of coffee brewing and raised your head to check the time. It was just after 9 am, which surprised you because lately you hadn't been sleeping past 8 o'clock. When you got up you realized that you were turned in the opposite direction of the way you had fallen asleep and that you were taking up the middle of the bed. You brushed it off, thinking that you must have rolled over when Jack left, because he wasn't there now.

You headed into the kitchen, where Jack was standing at the stove, frying eggs. "Morning," you said softly, taking a seat at the table. "Do you need any help?"

Jack shook his head and walked over to you with a full plate of scrambled eggs and two slices of toast. "Here," he said, setting the plate down. "You're just in time."

"Jack, no, you made it, you should eat first," you said. "I can make my own eggs."

He turned towards you and frowned. "Not going to happen Y/N, it's not a big deal. Besides, can't I do something nice for my fake wife every now and then?" he joked.

You cracked a small smile at that and accepted the plate. "Fine, but I'm doing the dishes after, Thompson," you said, faking intensity.

Jack smiled this time at the use of his last name, far different than the last time you called him 'Thompson.' "I guess I can agree to that," he said, smiling.

For the first time in a very long time, you felt at home.

***

Time was slowly ticking, and you two were no closer to gaining concrete evidence and deciding for sure which of the neighbors were enemy agents. There were barely any suspects other than Mary's husband Robert, but you still weren't totally sure if he was who you were looking for. Jack was at the office today, looking to see what he could find out about him. When you had gone over Mary's house for dinner, he had said that he was in the army during the war, but hadn't said anything about which division he was in or even where he served. And on your daily walk with Mary, she seemed more quiet and timid than used, and when you asked her if she was okay, the only response you got was "I'm just a little tired."

You were lost in thought when Jack came home, and he only got your attention by clearing his throat and knocking on the living room wall. "I have some interesting stuff," he said, sitting down on the chair. "I don't think Robert is the spy. I did a little digging into his war record, and he was awarded the army's Distinguished Service Cross for his actions in Germany in '43, and was honorably discharged the same year for an injury sustained in battle. If he truly was who we were sent here to find, his army record wouldn't be that strong, and if he somehow had faked any documents, he'd be flaunting them in order to convince everyone he was willing to fight and die for the United States."

You nodded. "You're right. Someone who has to sell a story is going to peddle it much more than someone who doesn't," you said. "He must have experienced something over there that he wanted to wipe from his memory completely."

"That's extremely likely," Jack responded. "I didn't serve on the same front he did but almost everyone who fought came back with something they would have rather left on the battlefield. What I still can't wrap my head around though," he added, shaking his head. "Is why both Robert and Mary act this oddly when we pretty much ruled them out as spies now."

The wheels were turning in your brain, and you finally came to an uncomfortable realization. "I don't think them acting weird has anything to do with being spies," you said softly. "Like you said, almost every soldier comes back with baggage from war, so what if Robert is taking out his frustrations on his wife?" Jack's face was solemn with the weight of the realization, and you continued to speak, knowing in the worst way that you were right. "Compared to the other ladies of the neighborhood, Mary is meek and quiet and constantly on edge, like she's never allowed to speak her opinion. When she told me she accidentally ran into a wall, he must have pushed her against it."

Both of you sat in silence for a few moments, just thinking. "Can we do anything?" Jack asked.

"I don't know," you said softly. "I really don't know."

"That also means we're back to square one for suspects," Jack said. "I can't think of anyone who has acted suspicious."

Like it or not, you still had a job to do in this neighborhood, which was to find the spy. But you couldn't stop thinking about Mary, and one particular thought crossed your mind. "Jack, do you think the other neighbors know about Mary? That her husband beats her, and fairly often from what I can see."

"I'm not sure," he answered. "Has anyone said anything to you?"

"No," you said. "I don't think she goes to a lot of the neighborhood events, or has many people she's really close with. The only other person I've ever heard her talk about was..." you trailed off and your eyes widened with another big realization. "Evelyn!" you practically yelled through the house. "Evelyn is the spy!"

"Are you sure?" Jack was skeptical. "I though you ruled her out after meeting her in the grocery store."

"Now it all makes sense," you said. "Mary told me that Evelyn is always checking up on her, making sure that she gets invited to the neighborhood parties, offering to babysit if she wants, and even offering for Mary to sleep in her guest bedroom if she ever needed to. That's more than just being a neighbor, Jack, even for around here."

"Why would she go through all those lengths?"

"For Mary's complete trust. The organization that you guys found in Russia, the school? They used young girls and trained them from a young age to be killing machines, because women aren't looked at in society. What if this is a similar situation? If I was recruiting for an Anti-American organization, I would go for scorned women, women who are ignored or beaten at home, because they would be easy to convert. Because not only that, but suburban housewives are often even more invisible than other women, because they're supposed to be docile and obedient, as the saying 'women should be seen and not heard' implies."

Jack nodded, making sense of everything. "You're right. By gaining Mary's complete trust, eventually Evelyn could convince her to join the organization as a way to get back at her husband. You said she sounded like she didn't really want to be a mother, so what if Evelyn picked up on her ambitions and is now slowly recruiting her?"

"We need a game plan if we're going to confirm this," you said. "And we're going to need a way to get into her house for some snooping. Do you think you could get some listening devices from the office?"

"How are we going to get in? If she really is the spy, they'll be some big security measures."

"I guess we'll just have to wait a little and see if the right opportunity comes up."

***

As it turns out, 'the right opportunity' was knocking on the door the very next day, in the form of a neighborhood wide dinner party that Saturday night, hosted by Evelyn and her husband Alexander. The dress code was formal and pretty much the entire neighborhood was going. Thankfully you had brought a formal gown with you in your luggage, or you would have had to go shopping for one under considerable time constraints. The dress in question was navy blue and tea length, with a simple sweetheart neckline and cap sleeves. Good enough in a pinch, but you didn't think you would attract any attention wearing it.

Jack had come home the day before the party with some listening devices that were disguised as trinkets and small little knick knacks, so they didn't have to be totally hidden and could blend in a little easier. You had packed them up in your purse earlier and was now fiddling with your hair, trying to get it to sit right. Finally, your hair yielded, so you put the finishing touches on your outfit, jewelry, and makeup, exiting the bathroom. Jack was already done getting ready and was sitting on the couch waiting for you. You didn't notice this, but Jack's eye's widened and his jaw almost dropped to the floor when you entered the room, looking like something out of a dream.

"Ready to go?" you asked.

He nodded, standing up. "You look beautiful."

You blushed in response, partly because of the compliment but also party because he looked fantastic in his suit. You had been grappling with a renewed attraction towards Jack since the mission began, which you had originally chalked up to the fact that you had to pretend to be married to him. But now, you weren't too sure if that was all of it.

Since the party was only across the street, you walked over to Evelyn's house. Once you two stepped inside, Jack offered you his arm and you took it, getting ready to brave what would lie ahead of you two.

***

Up until tonight, you had always assumed that you would die either of old age, or of some unfortunate mission for the SSR. But tonight, you were over 100 percent sure that small talk would kill you well before anything else even had the chance. You gave out phony compliments, received phony compliments, and talked about the weather more times than you would ever like to for the rest of your life. Catching Jack's eye from across the room, you nodded ever so slightly and he nodded back, getting your message. Excusing yourself from the conversation you were currently having with Nora, you went off into the house so you could 'find the bathroom,' but in reality, find a place to put the listening devices.

You ventured through the house, not straying too far away from the sounds of the party but not too close either. A few moments after you walked into the study, Jack joined you. "Are you bored of small talk too?" you asked, opening your purse to grab the listening devices.

"Like you wouldn't believe," he responded lowly, listening out for anyone following you.

You handed him two of the devices, and you took the other two. You worked in sync with one another, barely needed to talk to communicate. And everything was going exactly the way it was planned until you could hear Evelyn's voice getting closer to where you two were.

Jack heard it too, and in a flash grabbed you and pulled you closer to him, standing against a wall. "We can't jeopardize this whole mission right now," he whispered. "Do you trust me?"

You were shocked, not really knowing what to say. Evelyn's voice was getting closer, so he looked you right in the eyes with an expression you couldn't quite read. "Y/N, I need to know if you trust me, because I care about you too much to spring this on you. Please!"

And in the smallest of voices, you answered. "Yes Jack. I trust you."

And his lips were on yours, suddenly and intensely. You immediately kissed him back, knowing exactly what was going on. And as much as the adrenaline running through your veins was stopping you from truly registering what was happening, there was a part of you that rejoiced in kissing him again.

You could hear the footsteps right outside the room you were in, and Jack broke the kiss. "Gotta kick it up a notch," he whispered, moving down to kiss your neck. You let out a small moan right as Evelyn and her husband entered the room, causing you two to jump apart.

Evelyn and her husband were shocked, definitely not expecting the sight they were greeted with. You were shocked and sheepish, and Jack had a tinge of blush on his face, but also an proud expression. "I'm so sorry about that," he told Evelyn, smiling. "I couldn't help myself."

She didn't say anything, but her husband nodded at Jack. "I'll just - be going now," you said quickly, practically running out of the room, and out of the house.

***

You were hiding from the world in the bedroom, not even changed out of your dress, replaying that moment over and over again. Putting aside the fact that you were enjoying his kiss far too much, Evelyn walking in on you two was awkward. And you knew that the kiss you shared with Jack was for the sake of the mission, so you were playing up the dramatics a little bit too. You had been building your persona in the neighborhood as someone who wasn't overly outgoing and loud, so it would definitely raise some eyebrows if you didn't run off in embarrassment after being caught making out in the study.

Not too long after you ran off, you heard the door open and Jack call your name. You let him know that you were in the bedroom and he entered, looking worried. "Are you okay?" he asked.

You nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just figured it would look odd if I stayed at the party and didn't act embarrassed or anything. It also removes any suspicion about us, because you know that Evelyn definitely told everyone else what she caught us doing."

"That's smart," he said. "Tomorrow we can listen to the recordings that the bugs picked up and see what kind of evidence we can send back to the SSR."

"Alright, as long as there isn't anything we have to do, I am going to get ready and go to bed because I am about to drop dead," you said, yawning and turning to leave the bedroom.

You were just settling in on the couch when Jack entered the living room. After that one night, you had gone back to sleeping on the couch, which had somehow gotten less comfortable than before. "Come on, you're sleeping in the bed," he said. "I know that couch is uncomfortable, and it's the least I can do after tonight."

You were going to put up a fight, but the fatigue was quickly setting in. "Alright," you agreed. "Just this once. And if all goes well with the listening devices, we won't be here for that much longer." Jack nodded as you started to collect your pillow and blanket. "But I can't let you sleep on the couch. The bed was fine last time when we shared."

Jack almost jumped with joy at your statement, before 'reluctantly' agreeing to your proposition and following you into the bedroom.

That night as he fell asleep, he wished to whatever god was out there that he could live in that moment forever.

***

Opening your eyes the next morning, you were not greeted with the wall you fell asleep facing, but with Jack, and his arm around you, keeping you close to him. And as much as you didn't want to enjoy it, you didn't really want to end this moment. A few more moments passed, and you came to an unfortunate conclusion: no matter how much you had claimed to hate the man, you were still in love with him and had never stopped.

But you couldn't grapple with that realization for long because Jack woke up and started to shift in the bed. He didn't seem too bothered by the fact that you two were snuggling for who knows how long, smiled at you. "Morning," he said lightly, voice husky from sleep.

"Morning," you responded, not really sure how to address the fact that you were cuddled up to him.

But apparently Jack wasn't going to address it, as he just got up out of bed and headed over to the kitchen, asking you what you wanted for breakfast. Breakfast was a comfortable silence, and you two just existed in each other's presence. You had just gathered up the courage to say something about how you two had slept when the radio started to crackle. It was hooked up to the listening devices that you two had planted in Evelyn's house at the party. Recordings of the house were being sent directly to the SSR office, and Jack would go through them the next time he went to work to see if anything was said through the night, but you could also listen real time from your radio.

"How close are you to gaining Mary’s complete trust?" Evelyn's husband was saying.

"She's almost ready," Evelyn responded. "Once she trusts me completely, we'll take care of her rat husband and send Mary off for training."

You and Jack looked at each other. ' _Training?'_ you mouthed at him, and he shrugged in response.

"Is there anyone else in the neighborhood you'd like to try and recruit?"

There was a small silence before Evelyn spoke again. "I'm considering Y/N," she said, and your eyes grew wider. "She seems invisible in the perfect way."

"But how? It's not like her and her husband are slowly inching towards divorce, we did catch them practically fornicating yesterday night at the party."

"I'll plant the idea in her mind that he's cheating on her at the office," Evelyn responded. "Those military types are all the same, and she'll eat it up."

Your mouth dropped as the two of you stared at each other. "I think we found the spies," Jack said lightly.

"Yeah," you responded. "I think we did."

***

After reporting back to the SSR office that Monday, it was decided that you and Jack would remain in the town for another week or so before agents came over to arrest Evelyn and Alexander. It was to give the SSR time to effectively plan the best way to contain them, and for you to give them as much intel as you could regarding their daily routines. It was going to come out sooner or later that they were communist spies, but you figured that the less people watching from the windows would be better.

That week passed uneventfully and soon it was the day that Evelyn was going to be arrested and taken in. You had to wake up at 5 am, because the SSR cars would be arriving in a half hour. Alexander left for work every day at 6:45, so everything had to be this early. If even one of them goes free, it would be an unfathomable danger.

You and Jack stepped outside when the SSR cars started to pull up and park in front of the house. Agent Williams, who had been the moving van driver when you first moved in, was providing cover for you and Jack as you walked up the steps. He knocked loudly on the door and stepped aside so only you and Jack were in view. A few moments later the door opened to reveal Evelyn's husband Alexander, and the minute he stepped outside of the house, Jack and Agent Williams grabbed him, pinning his arms behind his back. You moved past him and went into the house to find Evelyn, only to see her trying to escape out the window of the study.

"Stop right there Evelyn Jones," you said, pointing your gun at her. "You're under arrest."

She stood there for a moment with an almost surprised look on her face. "I should have known," she said threateningly before charging towards you.

Not knowing what to do, you tossed your gun to the side and started to grapple with her. She was a stronger fighter than she appeared to be, but you weren't playing around. After a kick to the stomach that sent her backwards, you ran over to her and grabbed her wrists, pulling them behind her back. "Give it up," you said pushing her out the door and onto the street, where the other SSR agents were waiting, along with a few neighbors who must have heard the commotion. "I win."

After handing her off to another agent, who pushed her into a separate car from her husband, Jack walked over to you. Catching you by surprise, he pulled you into a hug, holding you tightly against him. When he let go, you stared at him. "Are you okay?" he asked worriedly.

"I'm fine," you assured him. "I promise."

He nodded before speaking again. "Evelyn and her husband are going to be taken back to the station for questioning, and the other agents have already explained some of what happened to the neighbors. They're going to send a van tomorrow to pick up all of our stuff from the house, and after that, we can head back to the SSR for the debriefing."

You nodded, and the adrenaline from busting into the house and fighting Evelyn was starting to wear off. "Alright," you said tiredly. "I'm going to go lie down." 

Jack held your hand and led you back into the house, where you practically collapsed on the bed, and soon soft snores could be heard coming from you. Jack smiled and pulled the blanket farther up to tuck you in, kissing your forehead before leaving the room.

***

It didn't really hit him until he started to pack some of the house up that this was very possibly the last time he would see you again. Because after this mission was done, you were getting on a plane to Los Angeles and he was going back to live in his New York apartment. As much as the drive to and from the city had been a pain in his ass sometimes, there was something about it that he longed for. You, he soon realized, he longed for you. Because every day when he opened the door and comically yelled "Honey, I'm hoooome!" your smile and laughter lit up his entire world. And when he woke up to you snuggled next to him in the morning, he realized that it was something he never wanted to give up. But he had to, because he was the one that messed up in the first place. And he didn't know if you would ever forgive him for it, or even let him explain. As much as you smiled during this mission, he still couldn't erase the image from his mind of you staring at him bitterly on the train ride over, and that for the first few nights, you wouldn't even eat in the same room as him.

He had gotten most of the living room packed up and was rifling through the kitchen when you entered, still bleary eyed from your nap, but dressed for the day. "Hey sleepyhead," Jack said. "Ready to start packing up?"

You nodded and started to help him pack up whatever had been brought with you. It was comfortably quiet, until you spoke out of nowhere. "What about Mary? We discovered that she was being abused and we couldn't even arrest her husband for it."

"I almost wish it was Robert who was the spy," Jack said. "Because then we could help her."

You nodded. "I'm going to talk to her before we leave," you said. "She doesn't deserve to be treated like this."

Thankfully, it was Mary and not Robert who answered the door when you knocked a few moments later. "So you're an agent?" she said softly.

"One of the good guys," you said, and she smiled. "I was hoping we could take one last walk through the neighborhood before I leave?"

She nodded and shut the door behind her. Once you got far enough from her house, you stopped walking and turned to her. "Mary, I know your husband hurts you."

She looked shocked and ready to deny it before looking at you and nodding again, tears filling her eyes. You pulled her into a hug and she started to cry a little more. "What can I do?" she asked through the tears. "I love my son, but not the monster who helped create him."

You let go and looked her in the eyes. "I know this is going to be hard, but you have the ability to file for divorce, and the state will most likely grant you custody of your son. It won't be easy as a single mother, but you don't deserve to be treated like this. No one does."

"You're right," she said. "I can live with my parents for a little until I can establish myself and William, but I can't stay with him any longer."

You smiled and hugged her again. "If you want me to be there when you tell him, let me know," you said. "I am trained for combat after all."

She nodded tearfully and you took her hand.

***

Robert was not happy when Mary gave him the news. But he didn't put up any kind of resistance, maybe because you were standing behind her the entire time and giving him a stare that screamed _'I will kill you and I can get away with it.'_ It also could have been because he watched you exit Evelyn's house, having fought her and taken her done by yourself, and had listened to what those agents had said about you: that you were one of the best they had. You gave Mary one last hug and she gave you the phone number to her parent's house, telling you to call her if you were ever in the area.

Jack was pretty much all packed up when you returned to the house, and you only had a few things left to box up. You were dropping the rental car off tomorrow and taking the train back to New York after the van came to get your stuff, which would then be shipped back to Los Angeles. While you were finishing packing up your boxes, Jack called your name and walked into the living room. "Can we talk?" he asked nervously.

"Sure," you said. "Is everything okay?"

"I know I apologized to you already but I want to apologize again for how I treated you and how I broke up with you a year ago," he said. "I made the biggest mistake of my life by letting you walk out of my apartment and I've regretted it every single day since then."

"Then why did you do it?" you asked softly.

"I was getting threats sent through the mail, from some radical. They threatened everyone I cared about, but they often attached photos of you doing daily errands, and threatened to kill you," he began. "I thought that if I broke off our relationship, it would stop and you would be safe. I would rather die a thousand times over than to see you suffer."

"Why didn't you tell me?" you asked. "I can take care of myself, you know."

"I was so scared. Because I knew you could take care of yourself, but I didn't know what would happen if they did go after you. So I did what I thought was right."

"Why are you telling me this now?"

"I was going to tell you the minute we got into this house, all that time ago," he said. "But you looked at me like I was dirt on your shoe and I broke inside. And every time I wanted to tell you after that, I was afraid that you'd turn on me and go back to hating me. But I can't let you walk away from me again. God, I'm so in love with you that I think it would break me if I let you walk away from me again."

You were speechless for a few moments before finding the voice to speak again. "You love me?" you asked softly. The "L word" was never something you two had said before, but you knew when you were dating that you did love him, but you didn't think he loved you.

"I think I've loved you from the moment we met, darling," he said. "And I thought that I could ignore it now, that you would have moved on and I'd have to live with my mistake, but I don't think I can do that. When I woke up the other day to see you next to me in bed, it was the most precious thing I'd ever seen, and I never wanted that moment to end. And when you walked into the room on the day of the party, wearing that dress, I thought I'd died and gone to heaven, because I couldn't fathom how anyone could look so angelic. I've wanted to kiss you again for a long time, and I couldn't help myself at the party, hearing your little moans, even if it was just for show. And I love you so much that I almost wish we hadn't caught Evelyn as the spy already, because then I'd get to stay out here a little longer, with you."

Instead of an answer, you walked right over to him and pulled him into a searing kiss. His arms wrapped around you instinctively, and you both smiled into the kiss. "Hey Jack," you finally said after you broke apart. "I'm so in love with you too."

***

Daniel was sitting in his office when the phone rang, and he was surprised to hear your voice at the other end. "Hey Y/N," he said. "So I guess the mission's over?"

"Yeah, we got the spy," you answered.

"So when can I expect you back at the office?"

"Oh, um..." you trailed off. "Actually, I'm transferring back to the New York Office."

Daniel bit back a smile. "Does this have anything to do with a certain blond SSR Chief?"

"Maybe," you answered.

"Just maybe?"

"Alright fine, it is," you said. "This mission made both of us realize that what happened between us wasn't the end of our story. Love blooms in the oddest places sometimes, you know?"

"Well I better expect an invitation to your wedding then," he said before hanging up the phone so you couldn't protest.

Right at the moment, Peggy walked into the office, returning from her trip to DC. "What was that about?" she asked.

"Just proof that the world works in mysterious ways."

"Y/N's staying out in New York with Jack isn't she?" 

"How did you know?" 

Peggy laughed at Daniel's shocked expression. "I had to call over to the New York office for something and asked to speak to Jack. It was fairly late, but normally he's holed up in his office at all hours of the day, so I expected to reach him. Agent Williams told me that the chief was out on an undercover mission and for the time being, was only at the office from nine to five on weekdays. And Y/N was whining like crazy the day before she flew out about her mission, so I put two and two together. Jarvis owes me five dollars now."

"But they hated each other after they broke up?" Daniel said. "You remember when she first transferred here." 

Peggy nodded. "Yeah, but remember when I had to fly out to New York for that meeting a week after Y/N transferred? I walked into Jack's office and he was a wreck. He told me a little of what had happened and he accidentally let it slip that he loved her. I told him to apologize, but I guess he never got a chance to until he forced her to interact with him through this mission." 

"And you never told Y/N any of it?" 

Peggy shrugged. "She was so broken up over it, I guess a part of me wanted to keep her from getting hurt again. And it wasn't my place to tell her what Jack had told me," she said softly. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go collect my winnings and annoy a pair of SSR New York agents over the phone." 

_-the end-_


End file.
